Body construction for tractors



W. C. MATTESON.

BODY CONSTRUCTION FOR TRACTORS. APPL!\"1- '0N FILED NOV 25, 1919. 1 9379,71 0 Emmi-sci May 31, 1921.

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IN VEN TOR.

W flMaizZesww BY G3 ATTORNEY W. C. MATTESON. BODY CONSTRUCTION FOR THACTORS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 25, 1919- ]Patented May 31, 1921.

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.INVENTOR.

, WflMafiZeswW BY Q) ATTORNEY W C. MATTESON.

BODY CONSTRUCTION FOR TRACTORS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV,25, 1919.

1,379,571 6 Patented May 31, 1921.

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Willa/11110111101001! IN V EN TOR.

" TTORNEY umrao sraras PATENT WALTER C. IVIATTESON, 0F STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA.

eons? CONSTRUCTION roe raaoroas.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 31, 1921.

Application filedNovember 25, 1919. Serial No. 340,492.

To allwhom z'tmay concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER G. MATTESON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Stockton, county of San Joaquin, State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Body Construction for Tractors; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this application.

This invention relates to improvements in tractor construction and particularly to the rigid or body portion thereof, as differentiated from the motive power or mechanism and independent thereof.

The principal object of the invention is to elimihate the built up frame, as this term is usually understood, andcembine the functions of the frame and transmission and gear bearings, etc., in a single integral unit, providing another similar unit on whichv to mount the engine, the two units bein firmly 2&;secured together, and except for t e fact that it would be a somewhat large piece, and hence expensive to make, they might as well be made in one piece.

The wheels or endless track members are directly supported from these units, the .structure being especially intended for use with the track supporting structure shown in my co-pending a plication for patent, filed Nov. 25, 1919, erial Number 340,493, though it is equally adapted to be-used for wheel drive tractors and others. Q 1

The advantages of my improved form of body construction are many. By the elimination of the ordinary frame, a multiplicity of attendant evils and defects is likewise done away with. The usual frame is a built up structure, necessitating drilling, riveting,

the frame beams weakens the same considerably.

With my body units, how-ever, which are to be made of cast steel, the bearings for all y the shafting necessary in the entire tractor are formed integral with the unit, and all the boring or reaming necessary to finish the bear1ngs,.etc., can be done at one operation on a boring mill, so that it is an easy and simple matter to obtain accurate aline- 'ment of the various shafts.

, Also, since each body unit is a casting, and

hence naturally rigid, the motive power un1ts mounted therein will never be subjected to the torsional strains common to those mounted on frames, which are somewhat flexible, especially in a transverse plane, notwithstanding whatever elaborate bracing they may have. r Another: object is to provide the rearmost of the cast units, which is the one having the transmission and clutch elementstherein,

with suitably positioned vertical walls,

thereby not only bracing the casting and forming supports for various bearings, but dividing the member into a plurality of separate and independent compartments, oil tight relative to each other.

With this construction, I am enabled to mount in one compartment a dry clutch, on

which oil is a detriment, in the next one, a. transmission unit, preferably immersed in oil, and so on, sothat each unit is maintained in its proper state without the necessity of a separate housingfor each.

A further object of the invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive device and yet one which. will be exceedingly effective for the purposes for which it is designed.

These objects I accomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims. In the drawings similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views. Figure 1 is a side elevation of my twounit body construction, showing the running gear, in dotted lines, mounted in connection therewith.

Fig. 2 is a top-plan view of the forward body unit. Fig. 3 is a rear end elevation of the same. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section through the same. r

Fig. 5 is a top-plan view of the rear body unit.

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of the same. 1

Fig. 7 is a cross section taken on a line 7-7 of Fig. 6.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on the drawings the numeral 1 denotes the front unit of the body, and 2 the rear unit. The front unit is a single casting, preferably of steel, and substantially semi-circular 1n cross section, and

cent the fly wheel of the engine.

make of engine used, the flanges 3 also serv-' ing as a base for a radiator 9 and the engine hood 10.

A vertical'wall 11 is formed in the mem-' her 1 just forward of the front end of the engine proper, leaving a compartment 12 adapted to contain auxiliary features run by the engine, such as a stationary transverse pulley-drive, and the like, which would be mounted in bearings 13 provided in the walls of this compartment, these hearings of course being provided with suitable caps.' Hand holes 14,.are provided in the bottomof the member 1 at various intervals. Adj acent the rear end of the member, horizontal brackets 15 project therefrom for a purpose as will appear, these brackets being preferably separately cast members, both for ease of casting and because with certain forms of tractors they may be omitted. The rear end of the unitl is provided with a vertical peripheral flange 16, adapted to register with and be secured to a similar flange 17 on the front end of the rear unit 2. This flange forms a full circle with av hood 18 secured on the'horizontal. side flanges 19 of the member 2, so that it maybe secured to the upper half of the fly wheel housing of the engine, the diameter of such usually being of standard sizes.

Under the member 2, adjacent the rear end thereof are formed transverse sleeves 20 adapted to receive a fixed axle therein, on each end of which axle may be turnably mounted the drive sprocket wheels 21 of an endless track structure 22, such as is shown in my co-pending application for patent previously mentioned. I The forward end of these track bearing units is flexibly connected to the body by the aid of the rac et 15 n the front body u it.

At the forward end is a It is to be understood, however that the sphere of usefulness of my body construction is not confined to the endless track type of tractor since it may be adapted without any changes for use with plain round driven wheels.

In the particular design of tractor for which this body construction is desi ed, I employ a dry clutch immediately behind the engine, after which comes the transmission and change speed unit, to the rear of that the necessary gearin to drive a transverse shaft, and on each side of said gearing another dry clutch controlling the transmission of the power to the main sprocket or driven wheels outside the body.

In order to maintain each unit separate from the others, I provide a transverse vertical wall 23 a certain distance from the front end of the casting, thereby forming a compartment2 1 of suflicient size to receive a dry friction clutchtherein.

Spaced from the wall 23 to the rear 'of the same is a similar wall 25, forming a compartment 26 therebetween, adapted to receive the members of a transmission unit therein, the walls being provided with suitably positioned bearings 27 to receive the shafting of said transmission member.

Extending from the rear end of the unit 2 to the wall 25 and spaced apart'are longitudinal and parallel Walls 28, forming therebetween a compartment 29 for the reception of the necessary bevel gears therein. Similarly between the outer side Walls of the unit 2 and the walls 28 are formed compartments 30 adapted to each receive a dry friction clutch therein mounted on a jack shaft turnable in bearings 31 formed in the Walls of said compartments. 4

All the walls are provided with horizontal flanges 32 along their upper edges, to

which may be secured covers 33, each compartment preferably having an individual cover. Since these covers may be of any.

suitable material and of no particular strength, "since they take no weight or strain I do not consider them aspart of my invention.

The top edges of the horizontal flanges on both the members 1 and 2 are preferably on the center line of the engine shaft, thus mak-- ing for ease of construction and assembly. Hence the bearings mentioned as being formed in the walls of the castings are in reality only half of such, it being of course understood that caps are to be placed overall of them, as is common custom.

By reason of the compartment construction, such mechanisms as require a quantity of oil may be immersed in'the same without the chance of its getting on to such parts as do not need oil. such as the dry clutc es, and

this is accomplished without the need of inclosing each such unit in a separatelyconstructed housing or box, such as is usually necessarily employed.

-From the foregoing description it will be readily seen thatI have produced such a device as substantially fulfils the object of the invention as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the inventiom'as defined by the appended claims.

. Having thus described my invention, what 1 claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A body construction for tractors comprising a forward cast member adapted to receive an engine thereon, a rear cast unit secured to the forward member and adapted to receive clutch and transmission mechanisms therein, and an upwardly projecting hood attached to the front end of the rear unit and adapted to be secured to the fly wheel casing of an internal combustion engine.

2. A body construction for tractors comprising a front castmmber adapted to rece1ve an engine thereon, a rear cast member fixed to the front member and arranged to receive clutch and transmission mechanisms therein, bearings formed in the rear cast member for the shafts of the said mechanisms, and sleeves formed in said member below theplane of the, mechanisms therein for the reception of a wheel-supporting axle.

3. A body construction for tractors including a cast member provided with longitudinal bearings for the drive shaft of the tractor and arranged to receive the clutch and transmission mechanisms of the tractor therein, transverse bearings in alinement with the longitudinal bearings arranged to receive the jack shafts therein, and transverse sleeves formed with the unit below the transverse bearings and the mechanisms contained in the unit, and adapted to receive a wheel-supporting axle.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of a witness.

\ WALTER C. MATTESON. Witness: 1

BERNARD PRIvA'r. 

